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Initiation
Episode Description The Justice League reforms in a new Watchtower and adds a new expanded roster of members. They then recruit Green Arrow to aid Green Lantern, Captain Atom, and Supergirl in defeating a nuclear monster in Asia. Full Synopsis At a grocery store a robbery is thwarted by Green Arrow. Green Lantern shows up to help him and brings him to the satellite via teleporter. Superman informs the assembled heroes they will now be working all together and J'onn will coordinate specialized teams and send them into a field. There's a strong radiaoactive signal spotted in China and J'onn assembles a team of Green Lantern, Supergirl, and Captain Atom. Green Arrow insists on going with them so he can drop them off. They arrive and local militia open fire on them. They are greeted by General Kwan who tells them to leave. Green Arrow goes off on his own to track the radiation and comes to the aid of a local soldier. As he argues with General Kwan, they see a huge flaming behemoth who opens fire on the army. Green Arrow tries to distract it but his explosive arrows are useless. The others show up as Green Lantern rescues him just in time. Captain Atom tries to drain its energies but there's too much and he's knocked out. Supergirl engages the creature while Green Lantern conducts rescue operations. The behemoth attacks Green Lantern, badly injuring him, then escaping. The three heroes consult with the local hazmat teams and manage to find out the creature's weakness despite its classified nature as a creation designed to "protect" China from outsiders. They have to shove a carbon rod into the behemoth's rods and Captain Atom volunteers for the duty. Supergirl distracts the creature while Captain Atom makes his run despite the intense heat. He fails, and his containment suit is breached, forcing him to get clear just before as he blows up. Supergirl goes down and Green Arrow grabs a containment rod and tries to hit the slot in the reactor. He constructs a makeshift arrow and makes the shot, with Supergirl administering the coup de grace. Back at the satellite they manage to restore Captain Atom's energies. Green Arrow and Batman have a chat and Green Arrow decides to stay both to keep the League honest and meet Black Canary. About the Expanded League On his official website, Dwayne McDuffie addressed lingering questions about some of the heroes included/left out of the series. Firestorm (from the Super Powers series) was considered until Waverider was added and a new Firestorm was created in the comic. Black Lightning was in one of the original pitches until DC Comics refused to allow him to be in any animated series. Robin, Batgirl and other Batman-related characters are on a banned from the series list by DC. Commander Steel, Vibe, and Hawk & Dove are in the series since they never died (nor did they appear) in the animated DC Universe. All four are dead comic bookwise. Among all the heroes present: Green Arrow, Red Tornado II, Obsidian, Sand, Atom Smasher, Dr. Light 2 (female Japanese version, not the Teen Titans villain), Dr. Fate, Blue Devil, Fire, Ice, Wildcat, Vigilante (the Western hero - Greg Saunders), Waverider, Starman (the alien Prince Gavyn), Johnny Thunder and his Thunderbolt, Rocket Red, Metamorpho, B'wana Beast, Hawk & Dove, Booster Gold, Elongated Man, Stargirl and STRIPE, the Question, Aquaman, Aztek, Crimson Fox, Vixen, Etrigan the Demon, the Huntress, Steel III (John Henry Irons), the Crimson Avenger, the Atom II (shrinking version - Ray Palmer), Mr. Terrific II, Dr. Mid-Nite II, Hourman, the Shining Knight, the Creeper, Zatanna, Orion, Gypsy, Vibe, The Ray, Black Canary, Commander Steel, and Nemesis (Tom Tresser). Of the regulars, only Batman, Green Lantern, J'onn, and Superman have dialogue, although Wonder Woman and Flash appear. Production Changes Advertisements for the new season featured the swooping in-and-out logo and the "swooshing" musical cue popularized by the various Super Friends cartoon shows. A number of crew changes, the most significant being long-time writer Dwayne McDuffie being promoted to producer and series story editor. Updated credits with new musical score, removal of Hawkgirl for the time being, and clips from the concurrent episode (ala the original Mission: Impossible, or the closing credits to The Wild Wild West). Trivia * Look very closely, and you can see images of the faces of Copperhead, Cheetah, Shade, and Star Sapphire on the tiny computer screens by the screen that J'onn and Green Lantern are looking at when they talk about the nuclear monster in Asia. All of whom have been members of the Injustice Gang in previous seasons. * According to the TV Guide for the week of July 25-31, Kin Shriner was so dedicated to his role as Green Arrow that he showed up at the recording studio dressed as the character from the comic book. Episode Oddities * After the League goes to question the haz-mat guys in the destroyed village, the haz-mat men are walking around with clicking geiger counters--obviously the place is highly irradiated. Presumably Captain Atom and Supergirl are invulnerable enough not to be adversely effected, fine, but what about Green Arrow and the soldiers milling around the area, none of whom are wearing protective suits? * In the scene where General Kwan meets the Leaguers and asks them to leave, it's day, but in the very next scene, where John is reporting to J'onn back at the Javelin, it's night. * When GL accidentally yells out "Shayera!" to try and stop Supergirl from leaving to take on the monster, the closed captions incorrectly read "Kara!" instead. * There seems a curious reluctance by Green Lantern and his team to bring in reinforcements. With China at stake and their leader down, shouldn't they call in some back-up? Or is the world now having such troubles that all the other heroes we saw are tied up elsewhere? And if the world now needs that many heroes, how did it get along before the League brought them all together and coordinated them? It's not like the heroes have other things to do - Booster Gold and Obsidian have nothing better to do then sit around at the end and watch Captain Atom reinflate. And all the heroes were on the Watchtower shortly before GL and his team left. * In the various group shots while Superman is speaking, the position of characters varies wildly. We'll see a front shot of a character such as Waverider and someone else on his left. In the next shot we see a shot from Waverider's left side and the character just seen there is no longer present. Then we'll see a shot of Waverider from the rear and the aforeseen character is present but nowhere near him. * For some reason the new League satellite has showers that open directly on to the main hallways. Watch Green Arrow when he emerges to talk to Batman. Hate to be taking a shower in there if someone else has to open the door to leave! * Shooting a containment rod like Green Arrow does the first few times, without any fletching and with a particularly high density, is pretty much impossible for a normal human archer like GA is portrayed here. * Isn't the grocery store robbery at the beginning a bit of overkill on the part of the bad guys? A gang of men busting in with heavy-duty firearms at what is basically a Walmart. Only in the comics, apparently... * Presumably some of the heroes we see at the beginning are just for show. In the comics, Waverider can alter the flow of time and Johnny Thunder's Thunderbolt (the pink lightning bolt) is a genie. It seems any of them could dispatch the nuclear/atomic monster pretty readily. Continuity References Green Lantern: "Shayera!" In a potentially heart-wrenching scene, Green Lantern, who just received significant injuries from the nuclear cannons of Brimstone, attempts to stop Supergirl from going out to fight it on her own by calling out to her, but alludes to her as Shayera instead of Kara. This is, of course, refers to Shayera Hol--better known as Hawkgirl--with whom he was romantically involved with and who resigned from the Justice League following the events of "Starcrossed." Pop Culture References ' Visual: Green Lantern and Green Arrow being beamed up' The scene where the Green Lantern and Green Arrow are beamed up to the Watchtower is reminiscent of the way that Captain Kirk and his crew were transported back and forth to the starship U.S.S. Enterprise in the original Star Trek series. Green Arrow: "You're not gonna leave me up here on Mount Olympus..." In Greek mythology, Mount Olympus was believed to be the home of the gods which was located above the clouds, just like the League's Headquarters. In reality, Mount Olympus is a 2,917 m (9,570 ft) high mountain in northern Greece, the highest point in Greece, on the boundary between Thessaly and Macedonia, near the Aegean Sea. Quotes Superman: But from now on, we have to be more coordinated than that. We can't be cowboys any more...or cowgirls. Batman: Those monsters you don't fight – they tend to step on little guys. Green Arrow: Gee, Bats, I don't know. Don't get me wrong. I enjoy a good radiation burn as much as the next guy... Supergirl: I've just about had it with you guys. You've got 'til the count of five - 1, 4... Green Lantern: If you see anything, don't try to engage. Captain Atom: Roger that. Green Lantern: Ummm, you can just say ‘Okay.' Captain Atom: Okay. Green Arrow: Is that a containment suit? Captain Atom: Uh-huh. I'm not flesh and blood any more - just living energy. Green Arrow: That wouldn't be nuclear energy, would it? Captain Atom: With a name like "Captain Atom," what do you think? Green Arrow: I think you're what I marched against back in college. Supergirl: Why don't you take the stick out, Corporal? Captain Atom: Captain. Green Arrow: I still don't think I belong up here. Batman: That's the point. Someone like you will keep us honest. Supergirl: So, aren't you going to give me the "You did good" speech? Green Lantern: You're headstrong, unprofessional, and reckless. If you ever jeopardize yourself or your teammates again by running off half-cocked without a battle plan, I will personally see you're kicked out of the League. I don't care who your cousin is. And incidentally...you did good. Green Arrow: Say 'Ah', dirtbag.